Winter, along with colder weather and shorter days, brings mixed feelings. Ranging from enjoying the change from 100-plus degree weather to wishing for summer to return and longer days to spend time with friends. There are, however, fun festive activities to do during this season, even if it is just to pass the time.
The holiday season is popular for being a time for couples; the whole season is surrounded by romance, and all the movies include a hint of it. For the most part, though, couples tend to do the same few things together, and there are a bunch of cute dates that get looked over or forgotten. A few ideas could be baking cookies together, decorating gingerbread houses, looking at Christmas lights/zoo lights, or even having a full-out Christmas movie marathon complete with matching pajamas. This is not to say, however, that one could not do all of these with friends instead. They could also be a group bonding activity or just a fun hangout idea that is not as basic as going to the movies.
In Phoenix, there is no snow, meaning that the large majority of activities that involve it are not located in the area; however, some people may enjoy the snow, and while it is not everyone’s cup of tea, it can be a wonderful experience. There are many cute little towns all over Arizona that are perfect for a weekend trip. Strawberry, Arizona, is a small, quaint town about two hours away that has snowfall and a bunch of free festivities. Much like Strawberry, Flagstaff, Arizona (which is a bit of a further drive), has hills to go sledding on, an adventure course, and lots of different hikes. Sometimes a weekend trip away is really the best medicine.
Although not all activities are only good for the wintertime, there are plenty of things to do that are great year-round if the festive season is not particularly appealing to one. Near OHS, there are a bunch of places that are virtually unknown to the teenage population. For rock climbing, there is a place called Gecko Climbing Gym that has a ton of indoor rock walls. For escape rooms, North Valley Escape Room and Bam Kazaam are great locations. Some other activities are go-kart racing, indoor skydiving, and Top Golf.
Any way that high school students choose to spend their time is ultimately their choice, although there are bucket lists of activities to do or try in Arizona. So next time, instead of picking from the same few activities, remember there are a whole bunch of festivities that defrost this winter.
